A Tale of Two Cities (Illustrated) by Charles Dickens

Author:Charles Dickens [Dickens, Charles]
Language: eng
Format: epub
ISBN: 9788027225101
Publisher: Musaicum Books
Published: 2017-10-15T00:00:00+00:00

Chapter V.

Idleness at Albaro: Villa Bagnerello

Table of Contents

1844.

Arrival at Marseilles—A Character—Villa at Genoa—Sirocco—Sunsets and Scenery—Address to Maclise—French and Italian Skies—The Mediterranean—The Cicala—French Consul of Genoa—Learning Italian—Trades-people—Genoa the Superb—Theatres—Italian Plays—Religious Houses—Sunday Promenade—Winter Residence chosen—Dinner at French Consul's—Reception at M. di Negri's—A Tumble—English Visitors and News—Visit of his Brother—Sea-bathing.

The travelling party arrived at Marseilles on the evening of Sunday the 14th of July. Not being able to get vetturino horses in Paris, they had come on, post; paying for nine horses but bringing only four, and thereby saving a shilling a mile out of what the four would have cost in England. So great thus far, however, had been the cost of travel, that "what with distance, caravan, sight-seeing, and everything," two hundred pounds would be nearly swallowed up before they were at their destination. The success otherwise had been complete. The children had not cried in their worst troubles, the carriage had gone lightly over abominable roads, and the courier had proved himself a perfect gem. "Surrounded by strange and perfectly novel circumstances," Dickens wrote to me from Marseilles, "I feel as if I had a new head on side by side with my old one."

To what shrewd and kindly observation the old one had helped him at every stage of his journey, his published book of travel tells, and of all that there will be nothing here; but a couple of experiences at his outset, of which he told me afterwards, have enough character in them to be worth mention.

Shortly before there had been some public interest about the captain of a Boulogne steamer apprehended on a suspicion of having stolen specie, but reinstated by his owners after a public apology to him on their behalf; and Dickens had hardly set foot on the boat that was to carry them across, when he was attracted by the look of its captain, and discovered him after a few minutes' talk to be that very man. "Such an honest, simple, good fellow, I never saw," said Dickens, as he imitated for me the homely speech in which his confidences were related. The Boulogne people, he said, had given him a piece of plate, "but Lord bless us! it took a deal more than that to get him round again in his own mind; and for weeks and weeks he was uncommon low to be sure. Newgate, you see! What a place for a sea-faring man as had held up his head afore the best on 'em, and had more friends, I mean to say, and I do tell you the daylight truth, than any man on this station—ah! or any other, I don't care where!"

His first experience in a foreign tongue he made immediately on landing, when he had gone to the bank for money, and after delivering with most laborious distinctness a rather long address in French to the clerk behind the counter, was disconcerted by that functionary's cool enquiry in the native-born Lombard-street manner, "How would you like to take

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